A TEENAGER has been sentenced to five and a half years in prison for sex offences against children as young as 11.

Oliver Sturman, 19, formerly of Knighton Close, Crawley, committed offences including incitement to sexual activity and making and possession of indecent images of children.

Sturman pleaded guilty to seven offences of inciting an 11-year-old girl to engage in sexual activity and one offence of causing a child to watch a sexual act on a webcam.

He also pleaded guilty to four similar offences in relation to another girl aged 12, both of whom live outside Sussex.

A guilty plea was also entered for ten offences of taking and possessing indecent images of other girls using a webcam.

He was also sentenced after admitting sexual activity with a 14-year-old girl and causing/inciting the same victim to have sexual activity by penetration.

Detective Constable Chris Smith, of the paedophile online investigation team (POLIT) of Sussex Police, said: “It became clear that he had for some time been systematically approaching teenage girls online and coercing them into performing indecent acts for his enjoyment and sexual gratification, threatening to tell their friends if they refused to co-operate.

“However this behaviour came to our notice, and we moved swiftly to arrest him and put a stop to his vicious and unpleasant activities.”

After his arrest and bail in May last year, Sturman moved to Newton Road in Southampton.

While living in Hampshire he also incited girls under 16 to engage in sexual activity. He pleaded guilty to the offence in court.

His victims were all contacted online and received indecent messages aimed or sent with the intention of facilitating sexual activity.

Sturman appeared at Southampton Crown Court on January 9 and was sentenced to five and a half years imprisonment, with a further four and a half years to be served on extended release licence.

He was also required to register as a sex offender for life and was given a Sexual Offence Prevention Order (SOPO) for 12 years severely restricting his access to young girls and computers.

He also admitted sexual activity with a 14-year-old girl, and causing/inciting the same victim to have sexual activity by penetration.

Both offences were committed in Nottinghamshire, while he was on bail after he had moved to Southampton.

DC Smith added: “When we arrested him and seized his computer we found evidence of all the other offending.

“This case serves as a further reminder to parents and teenage children that great care needs to be taken in making contacts online.”

For more information on keeping young people safe online, visit sussex.police.uk and search “computers and the internet”.